BMW tumbles to No.3 position in India

BMW India had the Numero Uno title with it for over a year now, but the tables have turned, Audi has taken over as the best-selling luxury carmaker in India.

A weak economy and lack of new products seems to have hit BMW India’s fortunes with the sales dipping to an all-time low of 22 per cent. BMW, once the king of the luxury segment in India, has hit rock bottom with Audi leading with the No.1 position and Mercedes-Benz taking over the No.2 spot.

The German trio of Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz are fierce competitors worldwide and BMW so far has had the last say for a while. But, with the advent of a completely new range of desirable cars Audi has fought back. They also achieved their target of 1.5 million vehicles before time.

BMW reportedly sold 7,327 vehicles in 2013 in comparison to Audi, which sold over 10,002 units in the same time frame, whereas Mercedes-Benz registered 9,003 units. Audi’s sales grew at 11 per cent and Mercedes reported a growth of 32 per cent.

BMW suffered due to the lack of desirable SUVs in its range, whereas Audi is now sporting an enviable product portfolio in terms of SUVs. Mercedes, on the other hand played the price card to its advantage by locally assembling key models instead of importing them. 

Philipp Von Sahr, president of BMW Group India said, “We want to be the leading luxury car company with delighted customers, strong partners and most important, sustainable leadership.” Von Sahr, however, chose not to talk about the company's 2013 sales figures. 

This is certainly not good news for BMW as they have been the best in India for a while now, a few years ago they had lost the title to Audi but quickly regained it. Although, this time it seems a little difficult unless they refresh their product portfolio.

Interestingly, the German trio have their individual targets set for 2020, and Audi having achieved the figure of 1.5 million before time are better placed to achieve their 2020 target. Mercedes is not far behind with their product range set to expand. BMW has to get its act together for developing markets like India as the difference between winning could be just one additional car sold.

Source: Economic Times